MAAC & Canisius Bid on NCAA Hosting Opportunities

EDISON, N.J. – The MAAC has a long history of serving as co-host of a wide variety of NCAA Championships; from the Division I Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Regionals on five occasions, to the 2003 NCAA Division I Frozen Four with the nation’s top four men’s ice hockey teams. Iona and Manhattan joined the MAAC as co-hosts of the Cross Country Regionals, while Canisius and Niagara were co-hosts with the MAAC for the Frozen Four.The MAAC will look to expand its hosting experience with a number of bids submitted to the NCAA. Among these are Division I Men’s Lacrosse at Ralph Wilson Stadium, Division I Men’s Ice Hockey at the First Niagara Center and Amway Center, Division I Men’s Wrestling at the Wells Fargo Center, Division I and II Men’s Wrestling at the Amway Center, Division I Women’s Basketball and Division I Women’s Volleyball at the Times Union Center as well as the Sun National Bank Center, Division I Men’s and Women’s Cross Country at Van Cortlandt Park and Division I, II and III Women’s Rowing at Lake Mercer.“The MAAC membership has long sought hosting opportunities for NCAA Championships with our partner arenas and Local Organizing Committees,” notes MAAC Commissioner, Richard J. Ensor, Esq. “The current bid submissions are a continuation of that commitment and the strategic planning of the conference.”The First Niagara Center in Buffalo will look to host the Frozen Four in one of the years from 2015-2018. The arena along with the Buffalo Sabres, Canisius College and Niagara University previously hosted the event in 2003.

“We’re very proud of the resume we’ve built hosting large-scale sporting events,” said Sabres president Ted Black. “Our ability to cater to the demands of big events will only be accentuated with the arrival of HARBORcenter next year. Buffalo is well known for being a sports-crazy town, especially in hockey, and our facilities will soon rival any across the country. It would be an honor to bring the Frozen Four tournament back to Buffalo and to watch hockey thrive in the best possible setting.”In March, 2014, the MAAC will serve as co-host of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship second and third rounds at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, along with league members Canisius and Niagara. This year’s championship marks the fifth time since 2000 that Buffalo has served as a host city, and all four previous events were sellouts.In 2011, the MAAC teamed up with Rider University to host a sold-out NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Championship at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pa. "Global Spectrum is thrilled to partner with MAAC and Rider University to bring the NCAA Wrestling Championships to the Wells Fargo Center," said Wells Fargo Center General Manager Matthew Homan. "As a top-tier host of several NCAA events in recent years, we look forward to providing a superior experience for the athletes and their families during their time spent in Philadelphia."The MAAC has also hosted the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championships preliminary and regional rounds in Albany, with Siena serving as the co-host, on three occasions.This bid cycle marks the first time the MAAC will bid on Division I Volleyball. Both the Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y. as well as the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton, N.J. are interested in the hosting opportunity.Three times since 2006 the MAAC has served as co-host of the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championships Regionals, twice at Trenton, N.J. with Rider as the co-host, and once in Bridgeport, CT., teaming with Fairfield.

The MAAC has also been the co-host for two NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, in 2002 in Albany with Siena, and 2011, in Philadelphia, with Rider as the co-host. The MAAC and Rider also teamed to co-host the 2012 NCAA Divisions I, II and III Rowing Championships at Lake Mercer in West Windsor. N.J.

The MAAC has also submitted bids to host the NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse quarterfinal rounds at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y. Those bids cover from 2014-15 through 2017-18.